Kamasi Washington

Once a month or so I have a chat on RNZ on their Afternoons show with Jesse Mulligan. These things start – randomly and stop in much the same way. I hope to keep doing this. For a while at least. I think I started in December of 2015, so now four years into it or so… This […]

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July 12, 2020 by Simon Sweetman

Dinner Party: Dinner Party

Dinner Party Dinner Party Sounds of Crenshaw / EMPIRE What a supergroup! Dinner Party is the name of the band-project and the name of this 7-track mini-album/EP featuring Terrace Martin, Kamasi Washington, Robert Glasper and 9th Wonder. That’s almost too much talent to pack into one studio on any given day – and this mini-album […]

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October 3, 2019 by Simon Sweetman

Sweetman Podcast # 187: Mark de Clive-Lowe

Welcome to episode 187 of Sweetman Podcast with support from our sponsors – T Leaf T, Yeastie Boys and La Petite Chocolat. Now – as you probably know, as well as the usual platforms (this site, soundcloud, iTunes/Apple) you can now get to Sweetman Podcast on Spotify – follow it there and have it saved […]

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April 16, 2019 by Simon Sweetman

Ghost-Note: Swagism

Ghost-Note Swagism ROPEADOPE If Kamasi Washington is exploring the Albert Ayler/Coltrane connections in a modern landscape then Ghost-Note is doing something similar with templates created by Quincy Jones and Herbie Hancock…which is to say on Swagism they hint at the late-80s/early-90s hip-hop influenced and inflected funk and R’n’B jams of those masters whilst also adhering to the types of grooves Hancock and Jones […]

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April 30, 2018 by Simon Sweetman

John Beasley: MONK’estra, Vol. 2

John Beasley presents… MONK’estra, Vol. 2 Mack Avenue/Southbound You can almost hear the gnashing of the teeth of purists – Why do this to Monk? – but though Volume 2 of Beasley’s reworkings of Monk tunes for his own big band is the inevitable mixed bag (opening with Dontae Winslow’s rap on Brake’s Sake is […]

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March 20, 2017 by Simon Sweetman

Thundercat: Drunk

Thundercat Drunk Brainfeeder The West Coast Get Down collective really made their mark with Kamasi Washington’s triple, The Epic. Famously, the sessions for that album resulted in a handful of other albums – in fact they’re still coming; the group set themselves the goal of wasting no time, so every day they turned up and […]

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June 14, 2016 by Simon Sweetman

The Vinyl Countdown # 686

Kamasi Washington, The Epic (2015) I called it pretty early on – decided that it was going to be the best album of 2015 (for me). And then I wrote a review, still sure that it was the towering achievement of that year. I stand by it – of course. No other record meant as […]

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February 4, 2016 by Simon Sweetman

Gig Review: Thundercat (February 3, Wgtn)

Thundercat San Fran Wednesday, February 3 Thundercat is a freak! He’s got the jazz-noodling from the 70s/80s down pat; he’s like all of your favourite session stars from the fusion era and (slightly) beyond – and all at once. He’s like the best example of the worst nightmare that is the session guys running away […]

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October 9, 2015 by Simon Sweetman

Win Tickets to Soulfest in Auckland

Soulfest – it’s going to be good, so, so good – I had to give it another plug just recently because I’m so excited about the chance to see Kamasi Washington (given how great The Epic is) but it’s hard picking just one favourite act on that bill. The good folk at the Soulfest have […]

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October 3, 2015 by Simon Sweetman